Google Play Games is expanding to new regions

Nov 2, 2022 18:36 GMT  ·  By

Android applications and games on Windows are a concept that has been around for quite some time thanks to third-party applications like BlueStacks.

Microsoft, however, embarked on a very ambitious mission of integrating Android app support right into Windows 11, and thanks to the Windows Subsystem for Android, users are now able to run Android apps on their PCs with just a few clicks.

The whole experience is powered by the Amazon Appstore, which is now bundled with Windows 11 following the 2022 Update, so users just need to download and install apps and games just like native software.

And while Microsoft is working around the clock on bringing Android apps to all Windows 11 users worldwide, Google also has its very own program with a similar purpose.

The software giant wants to allow users to play Android games on a PC through an effort known as Google Play Games. As a standalone PC application, this new piece of software makes it possible to download and play certain mobile games on a Windows computer.

Here’s everything you need to know about Google’s program.

First and foremost, only Windows devices are supported, as Google Play Games isn’t available for Mac. However, Google most likely plans to expand the program to Apple devices as well, so it’s probably just a matter of time until this happens.

But as compared to Microsoft’s program, Google’s is also running on Windows 10, so it’s not limited to Windows 11 devices. Here are the requirements for Windows devices:  

  • Windows 10 (v2004)
  • Solid state drive (SSD)
  • Gaming-class GPU
  • 8 logical cores of CPU
  • 8 GB of RAM
  • 20 GB of available storage space
  • Windows admin account
  • Hardware virtualization must be turned on
  • Compatible PC device and configuration

Worth knowing, however, is that Google’s program is currently in the beta stage and is available only in certain regions, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, and Thailand. Google says it’s already working on expanding Google Play Games to more regions, but no further information on this front has been provided.

As for when the program could graduate from beta, no such details have been shared, as it’s pretty clear that Google takes its time to make sure everything is working properly.

Probably the biggest shortcoming is that the number of games available in the program is pretty limited right now.

“In the last few months, our Google Play Games catalog growth has been accelerating with many popular mobile titles including 1945 Air Force, Blade Idle, Cookie Run: Kingdom, and Evony: The King’s Return. All of these titles and dozens more can be played on Windows PCs via a standalone application built by Google,” the software giant explained.

Needless to say, the goal in the long term is to bring as many games as possible to the program, especially as the availability across the world is expanding.

Another important tidbit that users must have in mind concerns the feature lineup. Google Play Games come not only with mouse and keyboard support but also with synchronization support across devices. In other words, the game progress can migrate from one device to another, so you can, for instance, start playing a game on Android and then pick up from where you left off on a Windows computer. The only thing you need is to be logged in with the same Google account.

Worth keeping in mind is that Google Play Games is still in the beta program for now, so users could still come across various bugs and issues that affect the overall experience with the games. This is the reason the broad availability hasn’t been reached just yet, as the Mountain View-based search giant just wants to collect feedback to improve the service.